I am starting a new thread on this now that the project seems to have gotten bigger.

Here is the story:
Last summer we had some water line tiles falling off - we lived with the issue.
This year when we opened there were another bunch already fallen & upon our first swim even more fell off.
I bought the proper marine adhesive & was going to do a repair myself, but now so many tiles have fallen off I think we must remove all & replace.
I contacted a few people for prices & here is where we are at:

I have spoken with 3 different companies so far.

#1 - Mentioned he will fix & reset any loose coping as well as do the job.
Water will not be removed from pool - just lowered 6" or so.
$2300 complete including materials

#2 - My regular pool guy - he does my opening & closing & is good with equip repairs - not very chatty & sort of old school with technology.
He is very cheap for open / close.
He said around $2400 Water will not be removed from pool - just lowered 6" or so.
Didnt mention coping
I just bought the house 2 years ago & got him because the previous owner told me he has used him for 13 years & knows my system well.
He is not a tile specialist but told me yes, he does tile jobs often.

#3 - Big pool renovation company - coming Tues p.m. to give estimate
He seemed quite knowledgable
He said you definitely want to drain ALL water from the pool - then he will reset all loose coping, & do tile job in 1-2 days & then refill pool which will take 1-2 days.
He said if you dont drain pool it would be sloppy job from someone doing tiling upside down from above - he also warned of all old mortar etc getting into water. Of course he may be much more expensive.

UPDATE - #3 came & gave estimate:
- He measured & we are 100' perimeter.
- He tapped all coping with a steel pole & from hollow sound said all coping should be replaced - said if we just replace tile & not coping, the new tile will fail due to coping issues.
- He also said we should consider replaster entire pool.
He quoted as follows:
Remove all coping & tile & replace both with new = $10,282.50
Said he is having sale until 6/15 & sale price = $8900.00
If we add bondkote & marblewhite plaster = +$5670.00
He said after all this work, pool shouldnt need any work for 10-20 years.

I sort of want to stick with my guy only because I think he would be offended if I went elsewhere.

I dont think we can afford $10,000 - $15,000 job this year. Should I wait & do nothing until I can do entire job maybe next year?

If I am waiting, should I bother re-applying missing tiles myself?

Should we just do cheaper retile job $2000-$2500?

I have attached 2 pics - One shows most of pool & one is close up on tile problem area.

By the way, we are in Northern NJ area - Bergen County.

What are your thoughts?

Re: #3

What was the justification for the re-plaster? Is your plaster stained/scaled/cracked?

At surface glance, seems like he's out to make a buck. I don't trust contractors who say "I'm having a sale."

Is there a problem with the plaster, or just the tile?

There is a small amount of staining on bottom - that is all.

A small amount of staining is not necessarily grounds for replastering.

Would it be possible for you to resize the pics so that the fit on the page, there are a bit too big right now.

I cant seem to resize the pic

My main question is, is it always necessary to redo coping with the tile, or can I just redo the tile?

I know this is an old thread......but......WOW.....$10k for coping and tile???? Few thoughts;

- If someone quotes you a high price then offers a "special" that doesnt mean anything, it distracts from the initial high price. Kind of like a Macy's sale.
- You need to know what things cost to know if your getting a good deal or not. Labor for coping and tile shouldn't take more than a few (less than 4 days) with a couple guys. Cost of materials? Maybe $1k. Could be more, but not by much.
- I would approach your guy and say "I want to give you the work, but would feel better if the pool was drained. Plus it will make your job easier and may make for a better quality end result".

Probably too late, but let me know how it turned out. BTW, dont get lured into "Gee, the pool is empty, so I might as well throw another $5k to have it plastered". Draining and filling a pool really isnt a big deal.

HTH (someone)
Kevin

If you heard hollow on a lot of the coping, the mortar below has deteriorated. due to water penetration. The water came from behind the coping and is evidence that the expansion joint had been left unsealed for an extended period. The water wicked in, got to the grout of the tile and now toy have a coping and tile job. to look forward to. Guy #3 was right about that and about it needing to be drained first. The old mortar and grout will need to be removed. If the plaster finish is still smooth, leave it. We can probably help with the stains while the pool is empty.

If the existing coping is in good shape and the mortar is easily knocked off, you can reuse it, saving some money on materials. This is not a likely event. Somewhere, the mortar will still hold on and not let go. The result is a broken coping. Given the age, finding a potential replacement is not a likely event. If it isn't easy, the cost to remove it could easily outweigh the cost of new coping.

Leaving the existing coping in place is a serious safety concern. If someone knocks a coping off, it can hit and hurt someone. Murphy's law dictates it.

Bergen county is not an inexpensive region. I grew up there. Doing business in NJ is expensive too. Quotes here will be some of the highest in the nation.

That said, I would eliminate the 1st two from doing it. They have demonstrated either a lack of knowledge of forthcoming. The lack of knowledge will result in a poor job. The lack of forthcoming will result in the old "well, it's going to need more than we hoped" line.

Consider #3 but get at least two more quotes. Quotes should include using the old coping if possible (not a likely event unless all are really loose), new tile (prices vary per style), coping prices, and sealing the expansion joint. Expansion joints typically last about 5-7 years before the separation from shrinkage is sufficient to warrant it. This seal must be done or the coping and tile issue will return! You will need to replace the drain cover(s) too, assuming the pool is so equipped. They are about $50 each. If you have a spa, any there will need to be changed also. The new VGB federal laws require they be installed when the pool or spa is drained as a safety precaution.

Scott

When it's done, you should expect to see a patch line between the new tile and plaster. It will be a little brighter white than the existing plaster. This is normal when tile is replaced but not the plaster.

Well we are all done & the pool looks like new.
We were planning to just do a tile replacement, but after uncovering & closer inspection we found the coping to be much worse then expected, so we replaced all coping & all tile.
Whole project took only 3 days start to finish - they drained entire pool, removed coping & tile, replaced coping & tile, did acid wash & then refilled.
Price was very reasonable & we are very happy.
Finished pics attached.

They acid washed the whole pool? Guessing just to brighten it up and make it look "like new"?


Kevin

yes - just to brighten up